Thank you Madam President. And before I start, may I thank you and others for your kind words towards me and my team, and wish you a successful Presidency.

On this subject, I would like to start by thanking the briefers for their statements, and I welcome the Secretary-General’s participation in this meeting.

On 4 April, the Russian Permanent Representative told the UN press corps that what was happening in Ukraine was “warfare” and that in “warfare, you cannot exclude that civilians are dying”.

The truth is, that it’s not just that civilians are dying in Russia’s illegal war of aggression, but that Russia is deliberately waging a war designed to terrorise and kill Ukrainian people.

Civilians have been executed and dismembered in Bucha and Irpin. No distinction has been drawn between military targets, hospitals, schools, or the Mariupol theatre – outside which “children” was clearly written, and where the latest reporting suggests that as many as 600 people were killed.

Russia’s actions are clear violations of international humanitarian law, including, but not limited to, resolutions 2286, 2417, and 2573.

Madam President, I’d like to make three points on the issue of protection of civilians in Ukraine:

The first, and clearest solution to end the suffering of civilians, is for Russia to end its illegal war and withdraw its troops from Ukraine. Unless it does so, civilians will continue to die. And, many millions more will be put at risk across the globe due to food and energy shortages, resulting from the invasion.

This is what the Secretary-General referred to as the limitless potential for global harm.

Second, while the invasion continues, international humanitarian law must be strictly observed, and full humanitarian access to civilians facilitated. We commend the Secretary-General and his team for the efforts that led to the evacuation to safety of about 500 civilians from the Azovstal works. But, it should be a matter of profound concern for this Council that humanitarian supplies were not allowed into the city, and that the shelling of the steelworks restarted immediately.

Third, we are deeply concerned that Russia’s war is accompanied by a propaganda campaign, including in this Council, designed to dehumanise and demonise Ukrainians by labelling them as neo-Nazis.

This hate speech is extremely dangerous. And, as we near the anniversary of the end of WWII, it disrespects the sacrifices of those Russians, Ukrainians and many other nationalities, who fought to end Nazism.

Finally Madam President, I want to assure you that the UK continues its help and support to Ukraine. And today we announced a further £45 million for humanitarian and UN organisations to support the vulnerable and provide medical equipment.

I thank you, Madam President.

Thank you very much, what an honour to speak after my friend Volodymyr Zelenskyy, truly one of the most incredible leaders of modern times.

What a blessing for Ukraine and for the world, and what a disaster for Putin that he should now be leading Ukraine in Kyiv.

It is almost exactly 80 years ago, 1942, that the BBC first broadcast Shostakovich’s Leningrad symphony to the world. This was played by a half-starving orchestra during the siege of Leningrad, while it was being pounded by the Nazis, and that symphony became a symbol of resistance to fascism, and the power of the human spirit.

I do not know whether Vladimir Putin is a Shostakovich buff or not, but is it not a tragic irony that a Russian leader, himself from Leningrad, should now be laying waste to cities in Ukraine as Volodymyr has just described.

Starving civilians, bombarding their homes, driving them underground, forcing families to huddle together in cellars, or as we have seen, in that giant steel plant in Mariupol.

But no matter what Putin tries to do to Ukraine’s people, what the exhibition that we are opening tonight shows, is that he will never break their spirit. He will never overcome those indomitable armed forces, who have already repelled the Russian army from the gates of Kyiv, and therefore achieved the greatest feat of arms of the 21st century.

That is why I’m more certain than ever that Ukraine will win. Ukraine will be free, and a sovereign Ukraine will rise again.

And it’s because this struggle is so clear cut, and without any moral ambiguity that I can see, a struggle between freedom and oppression, between democracy and tyranny, independence and imperialism, light and darkness, good and evil, that is why I think it speaks so deeply to us.

That is why here in the UK, you can see blue and yellow flags flying everywhere, from town halls and church spires and front gardens and children’s playgrounds, and we in the United Kingdom, of every political party, all backgrounds, we are proud to be friends of Ukraine.

When Russian troops were massing on the frontiers of Ukraine in January, we were among the first European countries to send anti-tank missiles. I want you to know, and I told Volodymyr this earlier on today in our conversation, we will continue to intensify this effort for as long as Ukraine wants and needs our help.

And it is precisely because the Ukrainian people refused to surrender and precisely because they resisted so heroically that their suffering today is so severe.

Putin has driven at least one Ukrainian in every four from their homes, including two thirds of all Ukrainian children.

And just as we must help Ukraine to defend herself against aggression, so we must also do everything we can ease the terrible burden of suffering imposed on an innocent people.

Let me conclude by saying: take part in today’s charity auction. Whether you are bidding for Volodymyr’s fleece – a snip at £50,000, I want much higher bids than that, or you are bidding for a tour of Kyiv with Mayor Klitschko, I have had a tour of Kyiv with Mayor Klitschko, it’s a beautiful city. Well worth it, dig deep.

Support Ukraine tonight my friends so that that great ancient European capital Kyiv can never be threatened again, and that Ukraine can be whole and free once more.

• Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid today met with key suppliers to discuss boosting hormone replacement therapy (HRT) supply to meet demand now and in the future
• Manufacturers outlined the steps they’re taking to boost supply and pharmacists shared their experiences on the frontline, as well as sharing their thoughts on wider solutions including improved communications
• Meeting follows series of actions from government to ensure more women can access the HRT they need

Urgent action continues to be taken to ensure women across the UK will be able to more reliably access HRT products.

The Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid reiterated his commitment to address HRT supply issues when he and Madelaine McTernan, head of the HRT supply taskforce, met with representatives from the supply, wholesale, and community pharmacy sector today (5 May).

Meeting with Aspen Pharmacare, Besins-Healthcare, Gedeon Richter, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Orion, Pfizer, Theramex, Viatris, and representatives from community pharmacies, the government confirmed its intention to work with industry to do what is necessary to fix the HRT supply issue and listen to the experiences from industry and community pharmacy representatives and what they think needs to be done to improve the current situation for patients.

Rising demand has contributed to some of the supply challenges, but other factors may also impact supply, related to manufacturing, capacity constraints and commercial decisions. The Health and Social Care Secretary wanted to understand the issues facing suppliers and what can be done to address them.

Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid said:

I want to continue to reassure women that I am listening to their concerns. Meeting with key stakeholders and suppliers is one of many steps we are taking to ensure women can access the HRT they need.

We will leave no stone unturned in our national mission to boost supply of HRT. Along with appointing Madelaine McTernan as head of the HRT supply taskforce to implement lessons learned from the pandemic, and ensuring prescriptions are issued in shorter cycles for now, we are working collectively with the sector to urgently resolve this issue.

Head of the HRT Supply Taskforce Madelaine McTernan said:

The collaborative and constructive discussions today focused on what action can be taken swiftly to improve the near term situation as well as ensuring longer term changes to ensure these key products can continue to be delivered reliably and efficiently.

I was heartened by the positive input from all attendees and look forward to building on this.

Women’s Health Minister Maria Caulfield said:

I know HRT can be a lifeline for women suffering from severe menopause symptoms.

We are doing everything in our power to make sure women can continue to access the HRT they need to continue living their life, unrestricted by the menopause.

This comes as last week the Health and Social Care Secretary issued Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) to limit the dispensing of three HRT products to three months’ supply. This will save time for patients, pharmacists and prescribers and will even out distribution of in demand for products such as oestrogel.

Vaccine taskforce director general Madelaine McTernan was also recently appointed to spearhead a new HRT supply taskforce, applying lessons learned from the successful procurement seen during the Covid vaccination programme to identify ways to support the HRT supply chain ensuring it can meet both short and long term demand. Additional members of the vaccine taskforce will also be redeployed to support this work as the government doubles down its efforts to ensure women can access high quality menopause treatment, including HRT.